Dotted Lines
by hauntedd
Summary: Insights into Tess Harding told in 50 sentences


Title: Dotted LinesAuthor: Hauntedd/G  
Character: Tess  
Rating: M  
Disclaimer: Not mine, never have been.  
Summary: This is my response to the 50 sentences challenge at PA. My subject is Tess and all of these sentences are stand-alones based on prompts and do not connect to one another. I chose list 2.

* * *

**smirk**

She'd learned early to mask her sadness with half smiles, sarcastic rejoinders, and a haughty delivery – it became a part of her, no different from her straw colored hair or her short stature; a mask to fight against the simple fact that underneath she wasn't human at all.

**blue**

They were different, two orbs with glaring disparities that separated her from the rest of them, more proof that she was an unwanted entity in their group – but just like her melancholy, she couldn't change their hue.

**stupidity**

She knew she was smart – the array of As displayed prominently on her exams were evidence enough, but when she was around him, with his long hair and intense gaze, she could feel her mouth run dry and her grand ideas leave her dumbstruck and praying that he could teach her something about love.

**fire**

First it was a lick, then it was a taste, and then her control slipped out from under as she gave into temptation, heat bursting from every cell until they were all destroyed – and although her body burned and ached in ways she didn't know were possible, what scared her the most was that she felt no guilt.

**lips**

They crashed against his without preamble, her tongue meeting his as he gripped her closer, in and out and in again – a primal awakening of bodies and limbs and desire sparking sensations of lust in her, the need to consume him driving her faster and faster, clothes shredded and cascaded to the floor until they were naked and panting – in and out and in again.

**frown**

It was a common occurrence whenever Tess opened her mouth, down turned faces greeted her even before she could frame a word.

**anger**

It made her nervous, how Nasedo would come home from work and start screaming at her, but she never said a word – not even when he hit her and threw out her dolls, because it made him remotely human.

**cold**

Shivering, her hands wrapped themselves tighter around the flickering candle, willing away the cold, but it wasn't until Kyle put his arm around her that she felt a little warmth.

**mind**

She was slipping under, brain cells dying and knitting together as he pumped more energy into her mind, destroying her memories, her intellect, her independence – it was like dying while breathing; she wasn't even fighting anymore, her limbs heavy and tired, and all she could think of was Khivar, how much wanted to destroy him, how much she hated him, how much she wanted to serve him, how much she loved him, and Zan, how much she loved him, how much she wanted him, how much she hated him, how much she wanted to destroy him.

**movement**

Say goodbye, pack boxes, pile into car, drive to new town, unpack, say hello, repeat – this was her life, constantly in motion – new names, new faces, they never stayed long enough to get close so Tess created fantasies about the others to feel like she had something other than Nasedo.

**blanket**

They were sprawled out across it, more aware of their naked bodies than the stained and threadbare blanket, telling jokes and laughing as they awkwardly grabbed at each other's flesh, blue meeting brown as they smiled through the momentary pain, adding a new color to the cloth and a new dimension to their relationship.

**bliss**

The elation bubbled up within her – they were finally including her, taking her on the road to Vegas, some bout of teenage derring-do with no real purpose, but it didn't matter because she was finally getting a chance – a voice, and maybe friendship.

**intention**

She had come to Roswell for one thing – to claim what she had been taught was hers, but ever since she got here, she was thinking that maybe there might be something out there better than destiny.

**organize**

She was messy, her clothes were always all over the place – it was one of her quirks, something that made her human – Nasedo hated it, but she cherished her inability to keep her things together.

**table**

It wasn't much, the wood had small nicks in it, like the other two, but it was the first gift she'd ever received – a chair, a seat at their table, and soon, a family.

**portrait**

Michael was painting her, and she was letting him, they were doing this silly game of _let's pretend_, trying to ignore the $500,000 question, but then he smirked and she smiled, tossing a bit of paint his way, and he responded, and then they were grabbing at one another, laughing and grinning and exploring, coloring their flesh in an array of hues.

**star**

She loved looking at the stars when she was sad, she could just stare at Antar and know that somewhere, up there, she wasn't alone.

**destiny**

It was what defined her – 7 letters that, when put together, convinced the 7 people who failed to believe that she was an integral part of the group to placate her.

**separation**

She felt it the second she left the warmth of her pod – they were gone and she was alone, confused and cold – it was all wrong, so when he came over, with promises of reunion, she went willingly.

**sister**

Tess always had wanted a sister, someone to tell her secrets to, to cry on their shoulder, and feeling Liz grab her in that moment, when they were celebrating the end of the gandarium, she felt like it was possible.

**disaster**

She was trying to get away, trying to get back, she knew it wouldn't work, but she had to try – they might listen, they might understand, they might pity her – if only for the child in her arms, but as she felt the controls slip, she was just praying that her ship didn't crash in the desert.

**soul**

She could feel it leaving her, her conscious, her protests, and all that was left was the underlying knowledge that she **had** to get Alex to translate the book so she could ruin Max, Zan, he had done this to her, taken her soul – that was what Khivar had said and with all these thoughts in her head lately, she was inclined to believe him.

**accuse**

It was trial by fire, accusations flew back and forth in repeated themes – _Tess killed Alex! Tess murdered him!_, and no one stopped to think, to realize that she had been the first casualty.

**ceremony**

White met black and bleary eyes as she watched them hobbling down the aisle, drunk and laughing – and she realized that was what she wanted, some trashy dumb-ass sham wedding in Vegas that probably wouldn't be worth anything in the morning.

**vote**

They voiced their opinions one by one, each proffering a suggestion as to what they should do with her – as if this was some democratically elected bullshit, but she found herself praying that "yes" would come out ahead.

**ring**

They were supposed to be a square, a fighting unit with four points, but now they formed more of a circle, and she was learning that she was much happier with this arrangement.

**honor**

It never played into her decisions, honor was for those with options, and she had none – her throne was gone, her safety was compromised, her family was merely a hypothetical, and Nasedo said that their deaths were necessary, and she was too young to believe any different, so she watched him dispassionately as he burned handprints into flesh, taking lives with glee.

**ship**

It was the worst experience of her young life – flying through space alone, with only her sobs, her tears and the cool interior of the Granolith to comfort her.

**late**

It was always the same, she was too late getting out of her pod, too late getting to Roswell, too late to win Max's heart, too late to save herself, too late to save Alex – but this time, it would be different, she would be early, and it would be too late for them to save her.

**cherry**

It was incredibly unremarkable, he was on top of her and she was bored – he'd come too soon, she'd hurt too much and she didn't want to do it again – she just hoped it was better when she finally met him, met Zan or whatever he was calling himself now.

**tired**

It hurt to move, the weight of the world was on her shoulders – Nasedo was gone, and now she was supposed to be the one with the answers, but all she wanted to do was crawl into bed and cry, she was alone, hopelessly alone and she was so tired of the empty promises that everything would be okay.

**haze**

It only took a sip, but she kept drinking, willing her thoughts to muddle as her eyes blurred, her laughter increasing with every swig – if only she could always be like this, but like Maxwell house, liquor was only good until the last drop.

**heat**

She loved summer, the warm sun beating down on her back; it made her happy and willing to greet the day.

**demand**

All she wanted was to be accepted, to be a part of the discussion, to get a chance at friendship, but her first impression had been flubbed and now they were wary of giving into even that request.

**energy**

It was hard to control, it bounced off of every cell like a second skin, but he kept making her use it, try to learn how to tame it – so she kept expending herself, desperate for approval.

**writing**

She loved crafting stories - it was the one opportunity she had to express herself without prejudice or a strongly worded decree from Nasedo - the one chance she had to pretend that everything was fine and that she was happy, if only for a moment.

**misunderstanding**

They wouldn't get it – the things that fall out of her mouth were to mask her heart from more hurt, she couldn't bare to reveal too much, but it only served to drive them further and further away.

**left**

Everyone left her: Michael, Isabel and Max left her at the pod chamber, her first boyfriend when things got weird, Nasedo died, Kyle had left her to help Liz when he was supposed to be going down on her – but this time, Tess was going to leave them; move out of Roswell and make a real life for herself.

**jealousy**

It ate at her, watching Liz make out with Max, get another bit of what was **hers**, he had her friends, her boyfriend, her status, her life – and all she had was a shitty protector and a pint of Ben and Jerry's that she ate alone.

**servant**

Tess was a queen, she thought that meant guaranteed autonomy, it wasn't until much later that she realized that it just made her a slave to custom.

**hunter**

Stalking her prey, she circled him in the shadows, her throat dry as she stared at Michael's mouth, hungry for a taste of him, when he came up behind her, his eyes dark and predatory and suddenly the hunter became the hunted.

**keepsake**

She collected keychains with city names, mementos of where she had been that lasted long after her memory faded from the city itself.

**desire**

All she wanted was Max, she had just seen him, but she wanted him; he was what had been promised to her by Nasedo and she always got what she wanted.

**flowers**

Sunflowers were her favorite, bright and oversized they took over a room, but Max gave her wildflowers, probably picked from someone's garden, and she was suddenly rethinking her opinion.

**fist**

She balled her hands, wishing that they were larger, she had to fight, she had to hit, she had to do something – her powers had failed but she refused to give in without a fight.

**journey**

It had been a long time to get back here, she'd lived in foreign countries, in many states, but now she was _here_, with her family, and although she knew they didn't know her yet, they would and then all this travel would be worth it.

**regret**

It ate at her, all of the pain that she had caused, all the lives that Nasedo had destroyed, the ones that she had taken, Tess knew it wasn't worth it – she was supposed to be a queen, a leader, and all she could think about was everything she had ruined.

**shadow**

She never saw them coming, one minute she was with Max and then she wasn't – and Nikolas was leering at her, his gaze ominous as he held her in place, vowing that when he was done, she'd feel like a mere shadow of her old self.

**torn**

Her heart and her mind were flying in different directions, she knew destiny, what was expected, but when he smiled wide at her, his blue eyes dancing as they playfully teased one another, she wanted Kyle just a little more.

**door**

Tess liked to think, that if she had the chance, she'd get on one of those lame game shows that Nasedo liked to watch and pick a different door – then wake up and have a normal life, with friends and a family, but as she nodded her head, agreeing to another move, she doubted she had the strength.


End file.
